Residents gather to talk about man killed by DeLand police car

Tuesday

May 14, 2013 at 12:01 AMMay 14, 2013 at 7:58 AM

More than 300 people filled the Greater Union First Baptist Church on Monday night, responding to a call from community leaders five days after the man known as Spring Hill's neighborhood barber was run over and killed by a police patrol car.

PATRICIO G. BALONASTAFF WRITER

DELAND -- More than 300 people filled the Greater Union First Baptist Church on Monday night, responding to a call from community leaders five days after the man known as Spring Hill's neighborhood barber was run over and killed by a police patrol car. Volusia County Councilwoman Joyce Cusack organized the gathering at the South Clara Street house of worship to reassure a hurting community that Marlon Brown's death will not be without a push for justice. Cusack asked that a task force of community members be formed as a voice during the query into Brown's death and to create a "climate of change" in the relationship the Spring Hill community has with police. The meeting was also to inform residents of the status of the deadly crash and to reinforce the call for patience as authorities carry out their investigations. Brown, 38, a popular barber in the Spring Hill community, died Wednesday night when DeLand Police Officer James Harris ran him over with his patrol car. Preliminary reports from the Florida Highway Patrol indicate that Brown was fleeing in a vehicle from an attempted traffic stop for a seat belt violation. Brown got out of the car in a field and started running when Harris knocked him down and ran him over in a vegetable garden behind 901 S. Delaware Ave. "I just thought that we needed to come together so we can talk, so our voices can be heard," Cusack told the large crowd that overflowed from the church at the corner of Voorhis and Clara avenues. "We need to put a task force together so that the community could have a platform to get attention to the concerns you have," said the Rev. William Bradley, the pastor of the church hosting the gathering. NAACP West Volusia chapter President Michael Williams said members of his organization met with City Manager Michael Pleus and Police Chief Bill Ridgway earlier Monday to discuss Brown's death and find ways to improve policing in Spring Hill. "Chief Ridgway said that at the end of the investigation, appropriate action will be taken," Williams said. Williams also said police and city officials promised there will be no reprisals against residents of Spring Hill -- a poor and predominantly black community, part of which is in DeLand -- who come forward with information about the crash. The crowd reacted with groans of dissatisfaction when another member of the NAACP, Vernon Burton, a Lake Helen city commissioner, said that city officials told him police officers did not engage in a pursuit with Brown. City leaders met with members of the NAACP earlier Monday.Pleus, who did not attend Monday night's gathering but spoke later in a phone interview, said Burton was inaccurate in his statement to the people gathered at the church. "What we said to them was that we don't think it's a pursuit, but we can't say that right now because the investigation is ongoing," Pleus said. "What we said is that it doesn't look like a pursuit. By the time they saw the vehicle with Mr. Brown, to the time they pulled into Delaware, there wasn't that much time that elapsed, so it really wasn't a pursuit they got into." Pleus said he could not get into details of the investigation because that is the Florida Highway Patrol's task. "People are pushing us for answers and we're speculating on things that we really shouldn't be," Pleus said. What wasn't a matter of speculation is the feelings many in the community have about how DeLand police have treated them. Complaints ranged from being stopped for reportedly obscured tags, police officers making U-turns to get behind them, to having borne the brunt of officers' profanities. "We want this to stop. We have no freedom," said Ruby Campbell, who marched with 25 community members to the DeLand Police Department on Wednesday, the day Brown was killed. "We can't have no cookout, no party or take a walk to the park without being harassed." No city officials were at the meeting Monday night. Pleus said that it was probably better city officials hadn't attended. "I don't know that they actually invited us, but it probably isn't appropriate for us to go," Pleus said. "Everybody has a million questions and we don't have answers. It would be tough for us or the (Police) Chief (Bill Ridgway) to answer questions at this point." The most moving plea to bring change to high speed chases came from Gail Lee. Lee and her 12-year-old daughter were headed to Panama City in December 1994 when she was hit by a driver who ran a stop sign when fleeing from police at a corner on Spring Garden Avenue. Lee urged everyone gathered to be patient but to be firm in what "we say and what we do" to bring change. "I believe that a 25-year-old police officer needs to be mentored," Lee said, her voice shaking. "Police officers need to be held responsible so we can be safe."

— Staff Writer Anthony DeFeo contributed to this report.

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